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Reconstrucion of the Drechsler Palace
Architect
Bánáti Béla
Company
Bánáti + Hartvig Építész Iroda Kft.
Designed in
2017—
Built in
2022—2023
Address
1061 Budapest, Andrássy út 25.
Prizes
Budapest Award of Architectural Excellence, Commendation, 2023
In recent years, several historic buildings in Budapest have undergone renovation, with some projects garnering significant interest. One such project is the reconstruction of the Drechsler Palace, which, after nearly two decades of anticipation, has finally taken place – achieving outstanding quality.
The former tenement palace on Andrássy út was designed by Ödön Lechner, and the building bearing the hallmarks of the French Renaissance style fits perfectly into the series of luxurious buildings of turn-of-the-century Budapest. The dance education moved into the building in 1936, and it operated as the Hungarian Dance Academy until 2002. In the 2000s, the palace awaited the beginning of a new era in a neglected state, which arrived with the boom in tourism and the related wave of hotel development. The complex design task assigned to the Bánáti + Hartvig Építész Iroda was to preserve the remaining values, restore some elements and adapt the new function. The conversion of the building into a hotel required major interventions in several places. In addition to the restoration of the roof structure and its ornaments, hotel rooms were also created in the attic. However, the original silhouette was not compromised, only minor contemporary architectural gestures give a hint of the built-up space. The hotel lobby was placed in the inner courtyard, necessitating its conversion into a covered space, which became an emphasized contemporary element of the restoration. A glass pitched roof with a filigree structure covers the courtyard, and it follows the dynamic architecture of the building both in terms of design principles, and in its geometry reflecting on the articulation of the interior façade. Although the building was revitalized as a hotel, it does not hide itself from passers-by. Adapting to the circumstances, the hotel's main entrance opens from Hajós utca, which gesture enables the ground-floor cafe and restaurant welcome the guests with a grandiose arcade, satisfying the original architectural concept of the building.
Project leader architects
Lénárt Szabolcs, Zajacz Judit
Photo
Bujnovszky Tamás
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